A Little Less Murder, A Little More Mystery
by Queen of Cliffies
Summary: Don's baby brother was murdered when they were children...Charlie's family was murdered when he was 7. A tragic loss brings a family back together 23 years later and reopens a mystery.
1. Prologue: 23 Years Lost

Title: A Little Less Murder, A Little More Mystery

Author: Queen of Cliffies

Summary: Don's little brother was murdered when he was only 12 and after reading an article in the newspaper of a little girl's murder, he goes to comfort the father. Charlie's family was killed when he was 7 in a home invasion and when his oldest child is killed, an unexpected visitor offers his condolences. One death brings a family back together and reopens a mysery.

A/N: I know 'A Million' isn't quite done yet, but I sent the last chapter off to be beta. I also know that I was supposed to post a different story before this (Bruises and Lies) but I want to majorly edit that one because it is the story that I think will mean the most to me and I want to make it as perfect as possible. So anyway I hope you enjoy this prologue!

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23 Years Ago

_A young boy held his little brother gently as blood drained from the wound in his head, the men had killed him and gone upstairs. His brother was so still, so cold and the blood warm and sticky. He wished he had treated the younger boy better while he had the chance. Maybe God was punishing him for his cruelty by taking his brother away forever... but he wouldn't let Him. Maybe, just maybe, if he held onto his brother tightly enough, whispered he was sorry enough and told him he did love him, God would give his brother back. _

_He couldn't help the tears that fell down his cheeks, this just wasn't supposed to happen, not to his brother, not to him. Creaking footsteps from upstairs caught his attention and he squeezed the younger boy more tightly, praying he would hug him back. The men had come back down and were standing over him. Fear reflected in his eyes and he knew they could see it. Bravely he told them, "Go away! Leave us alone!"_

_"Shut up brat!" The larger man spat at him as he grabbed his brother's body and tried to pull it away from him.  
_

_"No, you can't take him! Please..." All the bravery drained out of his face and more tears began to fall. If they took him, it would all be real and Charlie would really be dead._

_The other man smacked him brutally and pushed him away from the body, "Friggin kids..." he turned to his partner, "You sure this is the right one?"_

_"Yeah, unfortunately. Why the hell did you shoot him?" The man Don had named Fat Jerk asked Charlie's killer._

_"I thought it was the other one. C'mon no use crying over spilt milk. Let's go," Killer said easily as Fat Jerk threw the body over his shoulder._

_Don stood up in front of them and yelled, "No! Please, you can't take him!"_

_Killer rolled his eyes and grabbed him roughly, quickly tying his hands and feet together before shoving a dirty rag into his mouth, "I said shut up and now you will. I don't like killing kids, your brother startled me, but if you somehow get in my way again... I will kill you and your parents. Got it?"_

_He nodded silently from his spot on the floor as the two men left and waited for his parents to come downstairs, if the men hadn't killed them too._

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21 Years Ago

_"Charlie congrats! The Cranbrooks have decided to adopt you!" The woman who owned the orphanage told him cheerily, but the nine year old just looked up at her sullenly. He didn't want a new family, he wanted the old one, before they had been killed. It was two years ago now that he was shot and his brother and parents murdered. He never got to go to the funerals, just woke up in a hospital far from LA being told he had no family._

_"Oh..." he looked up at the young couple who smiled down at him, "Where do you live?"_

_"You mean where do 'we' live and to answer your question, we live in Los Angelos... have you ever been there Sweetie?" Mrs. Cranbook asked him gently._

_"Uh huh, I used to live there with Mommy, Daddy and Donnie," he sniffled as tears streaked his cheeks._

_Mrs. Cranbrook gathered him in her arms and whispered softly, "Charlie, I want you to remember your old family and love them, but they would want you to be happy and with a new family, not in an orphanage."_

_He nodded quietly into her shoulder and asked in a muffled voice, "What do I call you?"_

_"Does Mama Gina sound good to you and Max could be Papa Max? That way you can still remember your parents as Mommy and Daddy," she offered sincerly._

_"Okay," was the small reply._

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19 Years Ago

"It's your fault! Why did you let me die!" The gastly young figure asked accusingly, pointing his long finger at him, "You hated me, no matter how much I tried to get you to like me! You hated me!"

"No! I swear Charlie, I swear I didn't want it to happen!" He cried and pleaded with his brother to believe him.

_Don awoke from the nightmare with a start and shoved his face into his hands. Four years since his brother's death and still the nightmares never stopped._

_"I swear Charlie," he whispered to himself, "Someday I'll find out who took you from us and make them pay. I swear someday I will protect people the way I never protected you. I promise." It would be a promise he would do anything to fufill, if it was the last thing he did._

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11 Years Ago

_He walked out of the recruitment office with the feeling he had done something right. Like he was finally fufilling the promise he'd made. He knew joining the FBI would not bring Charlie back, but he could stop other people like Charlie from dying. He could finally protect someone and get justice for his little brother._

_He wasn't a scared little kid anymore and he was going to do something about the crime that plagued his world. He knew his parents would be proud of him and something deep down told him Charlie would have been too._

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10 Years Ago

_"Melissa? Can I ask you a question?" A young man asked his girlfriend while swallowing thickly._

_"Go ahead Charlie," she told him with a bright smile._

_"Will you," he started as he dropped to one knee and pulled a small velvet box out of his pocket, "Do me the honor of being my wife?"_

_"I thought you'd never ask!" She allowed him to slide the ring on her finger and pulled him to his feet before wrapping her arms around him happily! "Let's go celebrate," she added with a sly wink._

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9 Years Ago

_"Mr. and Mrs. Cranbrook, I'm happy to tell you she's a healthy baby girl!" The doctor told the smiling parents as he placed the beautiful infant in her mother's waiting arms._

_"What should we name her?" She asked her husband and he looked solemn for a moment before answering._

_"Margaret Donna, but Meg for short... do you like it?" He suggested and waited for her feedback._

_"I love it! Just look at our baby, she's so beautiful," she told her husband with a huge grin._

_"Like an Angel," he agreed. _

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6 Years ago

_"Charlie! I can't take this anymore! Here take Eddie," she shouted at him angrily and shoved the six month old into his father's hands._

_"Mel, please. Don't do this!" He pleaded as his wife shoved clothes into her suitcase._

_"I'm sorry Charlie, we got married too young. I just can't do this, I'm not ready yet," She told him, looking at him in a way that pleaded for him to understand._

_"Mama?" Meg asked quietly from the door way._

_"Babygirl, Mommy has to go away for a long time, I'm so sorry," Mel told her as she gathered up her things and left, ignoring the child's cries not to._

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4 Days Ago

_"Meg be careful okay?" He told his little girl before she left to walk to school. It was only a block away, but he still worried about her all the time._

_"I will Daddy, don't worry so much," she told him as he helped Eddie put on his coat._

_"Don't talk to strangers and hold your brother's hand until you get there. I'm trusting you Angel," he replied firmly on the day he finally relented and let his kids walk to school by themselves for the first time._

_"Yes Dad!" She cried exasperatedly and grabbed her brother's hand, "Bye, love you to the moon and back!"_

_"Me too!" Eddie smiled as their father gave each of them a kiss on the cheek._

_"I love you guys too, now scoot. School starts in 15 minutes," he grinned as they took off down the street, but a second later gunshots shattered the air and he threw the door open._

_In his barefeet he ran out onto the sidewalk and saw Meg laying over her brother, "Meg, Eddie!" He screamed as his feet carried him as fast as he could towards his children. Eddie was crying, but Meg wasn't moving and covered in blood. She wasn't beathing and her heart had stopped completely. She had saved her little brother and died in the process._

_He folded a shaking Eddie into his arms and cried as his daughter lay against the sidewalk, now truly an angel. _

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A/N: This is just a prologue chapter, the second will come as soon as I get the chance. Going to a new school is hard and I'm on dial up (ugh), but I will do my best. If you review I will love you forever, lol! NO FLAMES!

Tons of Love

Nicole aka

Q of C


	2. Chapter 1: It's Me!

A/N: Hey ladies and gents, I'm back with another chapter of my new story and I hope it is to your liking. And to my reveiwers, don't worry... as the story goes on it will explain why Charlie thought his family was dead and why the men took Charlie away after he was shot. I've got a storyline planned out so please don't worry. Anyway I hope you love this chapter.

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Present Day-Noon

Charlie sat down at his kitchen table, a photo-album open in front of him. Drifting through the pages, memories flooded his mind. Himself at the age if six, looking near exactly like Eddie did now, standing with Don and smiling a smile that reached his ears. He and Don had gone to the fair that day and rode most of the rides together, it was one of the only times Don had agreed to do something with him. That day was his favorite memory of Don, the day they truly acted not only like brothers, but almost like friends.

The next picture was a family portrait, taken only a couple of days before the entire Eppes family (except for himself) was murdered. His parents were smiling happily in the camera and he was too, though he noticed that Don's seemed slightly forced. He'd had to miss a weekend with his friends to go on a short family trip, but Charlie had been ecstatic his big brother would be going to. He had hoped so much Don would share his passion of baseball with him by teaching him how to play. Charlie had known the rules, but lacked the flair necessary to play well. Either way anything Don liked had to be cool.

He silently turned the page and faced a picture of him and Mama Gina and Papa Max the day after he was adopted. His face was sullen, but his adopted parents were simply glowing, they finally had the child they had waited so long for. He skipped the next few pages until he found the one he was looking for... Meg at one years old...taking her first steps. He barely noticed the tears that had dripped onto the page, all he could think was that his angel was gone forever.

"Daddy... I'm sorry!" Eddie cried out as he walked in on his father crying, "I didn't mean it to happen! I'm sorry I let Meg leave."

His heart broke again as he watched his son break down into tears in front of him. In an instant he scooped his child into his arms and held him tight, "It's not your fault, Eddie. You didn't do anything, bad things just happen sometimes. You didn't do anything wrong."

"I want my sis to come back!" He sobbed into his father's chest and wrapped his small arms around Charlie and cried harder, "I want Angel."

"I know you do. I do too," Charlie whispered in his son's ear and found more tears running down his face.

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6 pm

'Famous Mathematician's Daughter Murdered!' The headline caught Don's attention like a brick wall in the middle of the desert. As he scanned the article he learned that a nine year old year had been on her way to school with her younger brother when a car drove by and bullets showered the child's front lawn. The young girl had died a hero, bravely pushing her brother down before diving for safety herself. It was something Don didn't do twenty-three years ago and had haunted him ever since. The second thing that caught his attention was the father's profession... Charlie had loved math.

"Hey Dad!" He called his own father in from the kitchen. Alan Eppes entered the room while wiping his hands off on a rag.

"Donnie? I didn't hear you come in... do you want some supper? I made too much for just me anyway," he asked quietly, but frowned when he saw the newspaper his son saw looking at, "It's a shame isn't it."

"Yeah... but Dad, doesn't it remind you of Charlie," he ventured. He didn't really want to bring up the tender subject, but he wanted to know he wasn't the only one.

With a loud sigh, Alan confessed, "Yes it does, so much I want to cry. It killed your mother when he died, it wasn't just the cancer, Donnie. She loved you both so much she couldn't take it. It hurts so much to think we didn't protect you and Charlie. We were just upstairs, but we still didn't hear the shot. Those damn men came upstairs, tied us up and told us what they'd done. Charlie was gone and you were traumatized, it was too much for either of us."

"Dad... it wasn't your fault, not Mom's either," Don told Alan and closed his eyes for a minute, it was not a subject either of them broached often, but he knew they both thought about it all the time, "We can't blame ourselves for something beyond our control."

"Then why do you Donnie?" His father asked gently.

"I don't know," Don didn't even try to deny it, "I really don't know... maybe because I was the older one, I was supposed to protect him."

"Don you did what you could and I know wherever he is, he doesn't blame you. Your mother and I never did either," Alan reassured his son and it did comfort him, that wherever Charlie was, he was with his mother now.

"I know," Don said with a small smile, "Thanks Dad."

"Anytime, my boy," Alan returned the smile and squeezed his son's shoulder comfortingly, "Don't worry, everything turns out alright eventually."

"I hope so," Don replied before adding, "I gotta go Dad. I'll come by and see you later okay?"

"Okay," his father nodded and watched his remaining son leave the house.

Don didn't know why, but something compelled him to go comfort the father. The man had raised his children alone for six years and was now alone with his traumatized son; he knew he had to do something. Finding out where the man lived had been easy, the article mentioned where the crime had taken place. Before leaving though, he noted that the paper said Mr. Cranbrook wanted people to donate to charity instead of buying flowers, so he wrote a check to the Cancer Research Society.

Pulling up the driveway of the three story house he noticed the crime tape was already gone, the scene cleaned up and released after CSU left the day before. The lights were on in the house, but the blinds blocked any actual view of the inside there might have been. The reporters must have drove the poor man and his son to the edge, he knew what the media could be like and they were brutal. He walked up to the front door and hesitated before knocking, what right did he have to barge in on this man after such a tragic loss? Shaking his head sadly he turned to rush back to his car, but the door opened quietly.

"Hello?" A voice asked in a sad tone, "Can I help you at all... you seem upset."

Don whipped around and faced a curly haired man, "I-I just came to offer my condolences about your daughter. I read about it in the paper and... well... I donated some money to charity... the Cancer Society, like you wanted."

A small wisp of a smile crossed Mr. Cranbrook's face and he said, "Please come in."

He followed the man into the house and into the living room; his jaw dropped open when he saw the little boy sitting on the couch. The child looked exactly like his little brother had before he died," he swallowed thickly and explained to Mr. Cranbrook, "He looks like my little brother did... before he was killed."

"Oh goodness," Mr. Cranbrook gasped, but was careful to mind his language in front of Eddie, "Here sit down... sorry what did you say your name was?"

Don sat down on the couch and looked up at the man, "I didn't say, I'm Don Eppes." After those words came out of his mouth, Cranbrook rushed up to him and hugged him tightly.

"Oh my god, Donnie," he cried out, "It's me, it's Charlie!"

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A/N: There you go, the official first chapter! I hope you enjoyed it and more will come apparent in later chapters. Be patient and most if not all your questions will be answered. This chapter is slightly shorter than the prologue, but I thought this was a good place to end the chapter.

Tons of Love

Q of C


	3. Chapter 2: Family Reunion

A/N: Well I'm super happy today, I finally have my own cellphone. Because of where I live, I have an ridiculously early curfew, but with this cellphone I can stay out later, YAY! My mom just likes to know where I am, she worries about who I hang with and such, but she should know me better than that. I am nothing like my brothers. Also seeing as I'm not allowed to talk on msn much anymore, I can talk to my friend in Edmonton more because we both have unlimited text messaging in Canada whoot whoot! Anyway here's chapter two of my new story and I must say the storyline is coming quite easily to me.

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Chapter 2: Family Reunion

Present Day-6:05pm

"Ch-charlie? No it can't be... you're dead," he stuttered, but slowly realized it must be true. His son looked like him and had his middle name, and his late daughter's name was Meg...which was sometimes short for Margaret.

"What are you talking about? How did you survive... wait if you're okay... what about Mom and Dad?" Questions flew out of Charlie's mouth before he could stop them.

"Dad's home... Mom died a few years ago, but Charlie, they shot you in the head! I was there, I saw it and I held your body in my arms until they came back and stole you away the second time. You were dead..." Don trailed off, the memory of the horrible events 23 years ago was becoming too much.

"But they told me _you_ were dead. All of you, Mom and Dad too," this was impossible, it couldn't be true. Why had the orphanage lied to him? Why did it all happen? He was too preoocupied with getting two of his family members back to realize he hadn't been there when his mother died, but it would come back to him and haunt him at some point.

"Who lied to you Charlie? Where were you taken... did they raise you or what?" Don asked, both of them seemed to have forgotten the young boy sitting on the couch near Don, who watched them both in awe.

"The orphanage I was sent to told me you were dead after I woke up from the coma," he replied, this wasn't making sense. Why was he taken from his family in the first place and why had he been told they were dead?

"Wait... A coma, how long?" Don asked seriously.

"Nearly two years and a couple months later Mama Gina and Papa Max adopted me and brought me back to LA. I don't get this... what the- is going on?" He shoved his head into his hands in frustration.

"Two years!" Don's eyes widened for a moment in shock, before he answered his brother's question, "Something very odd that's for sure, but we're going to get to the bottom of it," Don said with determination, pulled out his cellphone and placed a call. The phone rang for a moment and Don spoke to the person on the other line quickly and with authority, "Megan? Get David and Colby and meet me and my Dad's place. I'll be there in a bit with some very interesting people." He hung up and turned to his long lost brother, "It's time for some justice Buddy... and something tells me what happened to Meg has something to do with it."

Hearing Don's childhood term of endearment nearly caused him to tear up, it was something he thought he'd never heard again. Turning to Eddie, he said, "Eddie... this is your Uncle Don."

"Thought Uncle Don went away forever a long time ago?" Eddie said in a confused voice. He'd seen pictures of his uncle as a kid, but was told he'd never get to see him.

"I'm back," Don told him with a smile and the child gave him a big hug before asking quietly.

"Does that mean Meg and Mommy will come back too?" Eddie looked at his uncle hopefully.

Charlie answered for his brother, "I'm sorry Eddie, but no. Sometimes people come back, but Meg and Mommy won't. Meg's in heaven and your mother went away because she loved you and Meg and thought she wouldn't be able to raise you guys right. She thought I'd do a better job without her," he explained it to Eddie as best he could and hoped the boy would except the answer. "You have to be happy that you at least got Uncle Don and Grampa back, okay?"

"Okay," Eddie said softly and Don marveled at the way Charlie simplified everything to his child without lying to him at all.

"So," Don began and turned back to Charlie, "You want to see Dad?"

Charlie bit his lip and wondered why he was getting this second chance. Was it God's way of repaying him for taking Meg away? Meg was his angel and he knew nothing could make up for that, but at least now he would have a real family to help him through it, "Yeah," he turned to Eddie, "Wanna see Grampa?"

"Uh huh," Eddie whispered quietly, he was still upset about Meg, but wanted to stay wherever his father was for protection. Also he wanted to see the family he'd thought he'd never know.

"Alright," Don replied and turned to his family members, "Let's go."

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Present Day-6:35pm

There was a knock at the door and Alan went to answer it, wondering who it would be. Don wouldn't have knocked, so it definetly wasn't him. He opened the door just a sliver and saw it was his brother's team from the FBI, "Megan, David, Colby... what are you guys doing here? Not that I'm not glad to see you, and where's Don?"

"He told us to meet him here and that he was bringing some 'interesting people'," Megan supplied as she walked in the door.

"Well he's not here yet, that's for sure, but you are welcome to wait," Alan told them and they all walked into the living room and sat down. It wasn't much later that the door squeaked as it was opened.

"Dad?" Don called into the house and waited for a reply.

"We're in the living room Donnie," Alan replied and watched as Don entered the room first, but stopping to encourage another to follow. Behind him was a dark, curly haired young man and a child that looked so much like his youngest son had it was uncanny.

"D-dad?" The young man asked with a slight stutter as he took the child's hand, "Dad, is it really you?"

Alan looked from the young man to Don and Don just nodded. In a split second Alan was up and embracing his youngest son as tightly as he could, just to prove he was real. The young man burst into tears and hugged him back, "Oh my God. Charlie..." Were the only words Alan could think to say.

"I-I can't believe your alive... all this time, thinking I'd never see you again," Charlie spoke in a slightly raspy voice. Over the past few days he'd cried more than he had in his life, but at least at this moment, they were tears of joy.

Alan nodded, the exact same thoughts had been running through his mind when he first heard Charlie utter 'Dad' a moment earlier.

Eddie ran over to Don and looked up at him with questioning eyes, all of this was very confusing to his young mind. Don pulled his nephew into his arms and whispered, "Everything's fine, they just missed eachother alot, thats all."

Megan, David and Colby looked on, wondring why exactly they had been told to come, but knew it had something to do with the man that was supposedly Don dead little brother.

"Don," Megan was the first of them to speak, "What the-" she looked at Eddie, "heck is going on?"

"I don't know yet, but my little brother's alive and right now thats enough for me," Don answered, but added, "I want to find out how and why this happened. Are you guys in?"

"We're in!" David announced for all of them, "If anyone so much as touched my sibling, I'd hunt them down for sure."

"You betcha," Colby agreed, "I've got little brothers too."

Alan had by then led Charlie to the couch and patted his son's back until the tears ceased. He didn't know it, but Charlie hadn't cried from the time his parent's died until Meg's death and he was making up for lost time. Charlie looked up at everyone with red rimmed eyes and said with a tiny smile, "Sorry about all that."

"Don't worry about it," Alan reassured him and then realized something, "Wait... aren't you the guy whose daughter..." he couldn't bear finish and just saw the implications that came with having his son back. One of those implications being his granddaughter had just been murdered, "Oh God."

Charlie's lip trembled as he answered, "Yeah, that's me," he told them and added in a half sob, half whisper, "My Angel is dead."

Alan pulled him into another brief hug and looked back to Don who held the little boy in his hands, "Is that your son?" He asked Charlie.

Sniffling, Charlie nodded and beckoned for his son to come to him. Don put his nephew on the floor and Eddie ran to his father. Once Charlie had Eddie settled on his lap he spoke, "Eddie, this is my dad, your Grampa."

Eddie gave Alan a small smile and spoke shyly, "Hi Grampa."

"Hi Eddie," Alan replied softly and opened his arms. Eddie looked at Charlie, who nodded, and gave his grandfather a great, big hug.

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A/N: This chapter was basically the reunion, but I hope to add more of the investigation of what happened in the next chapters. Hope you liked it! I'm really liking this story myself, but I really do want you to like it too. If there's any improvements you can think of just point them out... in other words REVIEW PLEASE!

Tons of Love

Q of C


	4. Chapter 3: The Brat's Back!

A/N: Well heres the third chapter. And everyone who wondered why the two men kidnapped Charlie as a kid and then dumped him, you'll find out very soon. Mostly likely in this chapter lol.

P.S. There is some swearing here but no directly using the "f" word, and it's mostly the thugs doing the swearing too.

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Chapter 3: The Brat's Back

Vacant Warehouse- 6pm

"So your sure it's the brat?" One middle aged man asked the other. A month ago they had heard of a man they were sure was dead, and they had been watching him ever since.

"Uh huh," the smaller man answered with a grin, "It's definetly him. You see his boy, it's like looking at a picture of him as a kid."

"Why the hell are you smiling! You told me that brat was dead! We lost a shitload of money when you killed him!" The man, once named 'Fat Jerk' by a twelve year old boy, bellowed.

"I swear, when I dropped him off at the hospital, he was stone dead! I told the doctors he was my nephew and his family had died, but I couldn't take him if he ever woke up. They told me he was brain dead!" Killer told the older man seriously. "I noticed something else while I was watching him though, the brat's last name is Cranbrook now. Max got the effing kid and decided not to tell or pay us!" Killer spat, his mood changing for the worse. Fat Jerk looked at him and could almost see the angry fire inside him.

"Well I'll pay him back. As for you, keep watching the brat and try not to kill anyone this time!" Fat Jerk ordered his younger cousin.

"I told you, I was sure the little one recognized me!" He explained sheepishly and knew what was coming next.

"Yah and you killed his sister, you idiot!" He slapped Killer on the back of the head roughly.

"Well he _was _too traumatized to tell anyone who I am, Jace," He countered and then shut his mouth. It was better not to fight with his cousin at all. He knew what he'd done was stupid, and he hoped that he could prove himself to his cousin. He felt slight movement against his hip and pulled out his cellphone. Flipping it open, he answered, "Death here. Hey man, what ya got? You're kidding me right? The brother found him... you are so shitting me!"

Jace watched in slight fasination, but quickly put together what was going on. For a minute he was disgusted at the codename his cousin had chosen for himself, but didn't have the time to dwell on it. From what he heard, the brat's brother turned FBI agent had found the little geek. Swiping the phone from his cousin's hands he spat a few orders into the phone and hung up.

"C'mon, it's time for you to go back to the scene of the crime and find out for yourself if your man is 'shitting you'" He said with a determination that would scare almost anyone. "And as for Max... well it looks like the brat gained his old father just to lose his new one. I don't care who he is, no one crosses me!"

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The Eppes' House- 7pm

"What about Papa Max?" Eddie questioned as he turned back to his father, "He's still my grampa too right?"

"He's still your grampa," Charlie reassured him quietly and then noticed that everyone was looking at him expectantly. "Max and Gina are the couple who adopted me, they're also known as Papa Max and Mama Gina. Almost everyone calls them that now; they raised me since I was nine." It was odd to be around people he hadn't seen in years plus a number of strangers. He was starting to feel slightly crowded and asked, "Do you mind if we go outside? I could use some fresh air."

Don agreed instantly and there were no objections, so the seven of them headed out onto the front lawn. Alan and Don grabbed a a bunch of collaspable lawn chairs for everyone to sit down comfortably. "Alright, so does eveyone agree we should start at the beginning?" Don asked when Eddie was out of earshot, playing in the grass with a few of Don and Charlie's old toys.

Everybody nodded silently and Don produced the casefile that was almost always in his possesion. He had looked through it countless times wondering what he had missed. "Why doesn't Charlie tell his side of what happened first?" Colby suggested quietly.

"Well, all I really remember was it was late at night and I went downstairs to grab a midnight snack. I must of woken Don, because he came down only a few moments after me. I heard something in the porch and went to see what it was... then I have nothing but a few vague memories of a moving car and a couple of men having a heated conversation," Charlie recounted as carefully as he could.

"What were they saying?" Don asked curiously, but knew he probably wouldn't get an answer. Charlie had been seven and seriously injured at the time.

He closed his eyes tightly for a moment, trying to conjure up the memory more clearly. He'd never remembered so much before, all the other times, it was only what happened before the gunshot, but now other things were coming to him, "One of them said... _You ruined everything! _But thats all I remember, sorry."

"Don't be, that's awesome considering the circumstances," David offered with a smile, " And I know this is a tender subject, but what about you daughter?"

Charlie swallowed the thick lump in his throat before answering, "Meg and Eddie were walking to school alone for the first time. They never got farther than the front lawn before someone in a SUV shot at Eddie, Meg tried to push him down and ended up being hit instead. Eddie saw who did it, but he's too afraid to tell anyone and I don't blame him one bit."

"I might be able to help with that," Megan offered and from what Charlie been told, she was a profiler, and very good at helping traumatized children talk about crimes they witnessed. He smiled at her and then looked to his father and brother.

Alan spoke first, "All I remember is hearing a muffled sound and I figured that one of you broke something. I was about to get up when 'they' rushed into the room and pointed the gun at your mother. They tied our hands and feet and then..." Tears welled up in Alan's eyes but he didn't dare let them fall, "They crushed us, they told us what they'd done. They left right after that."

"Dad-" Charlie knew exactly what his father had felt, the knowledge that your child would never return to you. He didn't know what else to say, but he wanted to convey that he knew the feeling; although he wished he didn't.

"I know my boy, I know," he answered his son for him and smiled comfortingly. Don looked on silently at his father and brother, marveling at the second chance they had gotten. It defied all logic, but he didn't care. It was a dream that he never wanted to end, but there was still the task to catch the men who'd started the nightmare in the firstplace.

He looked at them and his family nodded quietly. Don swallowed thickly before starting his version of the events, "I remember every single detail," he began, "Charlie did wake me up and I went down to see why he was up. He told me he was hungry, so I grabbed the cookies from the top shelf." Alan smiled to himself at this, his youngest would have been too short to reach. He could almost imagine that moment himself, "Charlie poured the milk and spilt it. H-he went to grab a paper towel and heard the door burst open. I told him not to go, I did, I swear I did." Don was rambling slightly now, lost in the memory.

"It's okay Donnie," Alan told him softly and squeezed his shoulder. Megan could see the anguish on her bosses face, this had definetly plagued for most of his life. No one should have to go through that, especially not a child.

"I saw the gun, but it was too late. I held him in my arms for what seemed like hours and they came back downstairs. They were fighting because they were never supposed to hurt Charlie in the first place. They took him and tied me up, seconds later they disappeared out the doo-"

Charlie's cellphone began to ring, interupting the end of Don's story. "Sorry guys," he apologized softly before answering, "Hello? Uncle Dan... what's wrong?" Charlie's eyes went wide in horror and he didn't say anything for a moment. "No, please tell me this isn't happening," he pleaded with nobody in particular, "How's Mama Gina taking it? Damn it, I'll be there as soon as I can... I'll call a cab... or something, don't worry I'll be there soon." He flipped the phone closed and explained the call in a total of four words as his eyes watered slightly, "Papa Max was murdered."

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A/N: Not my longest chapter, but I felt this one should end here. Anyways I shed some light on what happened and I hope you all understand the implications of what happened and who everyone is... mwahahaha. Please wait patiently for the next chapter... AND REVIEW! PLEASE!


	5. Chapter 4: The Truth Unfolds

A/N: Well the fourth chapter is what you were waiting for... or at least I hope so. I'm loving the new season so far, who else is! Life is pretty good at the moment and that's why you get this chappy! It may be a bit short, but I think it worked out for the best. Please tell me what you think once you've read it.

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Chapter Four: The Truth Unfolds

Eppe's House-7:02pm

"Eddie!" Charlie called his son frantically and the little boy ran to his father, fear clearly in his eyes.

"What's wrong Daddy?" He asked with wide eyes, he looked into his father's and saw the pain inside them, "Daddy?"

"We have to go see Mama Gina," Charlie explained carefully.

"What about Papa Max?" Eddie asked as his father gathered him up in his arms, wondering why he hadn't mentioned his other grandfather. The child suddenly put two and two together in a precocious manner, "He's gone too, isn't he?" Tears welled up in the young boy's eyes as Charlie had no choice but to nod. Eddie sniffled quietly for a moment before burrowing his face in his daddy's shoulder and sobbing uncontrollably.

"Shhhh," Charlie soothed his youngest, and now only child, as best he could, hugging him tightly as he did. He felt a tremendous weight of greif in his chest, too much was happening in too little time and he hated the fact his remaining child was suffering because of it.

"Charlie... we are going to get to the bottom of this," Don promise quietly, "This is a federal case now, it is after all, in connection with a kidnapping."

Megan smiled in agreement before looking to the other agents, they both nodded, already feeling a certain kinship with the mathematician. Everyone could relate with loss, and this man had lost so much. It was the least they could do to help their boss-their friend- and his little brother.

"C'mon Charlie," Don spoke gently to his brother, "I'll give you a ride. Megan, David and Colby will follow us."

"And Dad?" He questioned as he looked back at his father. He knew the only way he could face seeing Mama Gina was if he had his entire family with him. They seemed somewhat like strangers to him, but he remembered that day at the fair and just knew it was going to be okay; as long as his family was with him once again.

"I'm coming and don't think you can stop me Donnie," Alan stood up and went to his youngest son. Putting a hand on Charlie's shoulder, he squeezed it comfortingly and looked back at Don.

"I wouldn't dream of it Dad," Don replied with a forced grin.

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Cranbrook's House-7:38pm

Charlie still held his son when he got to the large house he'd grown up in. The door was roped off with crime tape and an aged woman with graying sandy blonde hair was crying in the arms of his uncle. "Mama Gina?" He called and his adopted mother looked up immediately from her brother and locked eyes with Charlie.

"Honey!" She ran up to him and hugged him and Eddie tightly, "I'm so sorry Charlie-" she began but he cut her off.

"Mama Gina, it's not your fault," he told her gently and gave Eddie to her when she reached out for him. She hugged her grandson again and looked at the group of people her son had brought with him.

"Sweetie, who are they?" She asked as a man a little bit older than her came up behind Charlie along with a man slightly older than her son. Three other people were there too, but they held their distance.

"Mama Gina, they found me," Charlie told her before explaining fully, "My dad and my brother, I mean. Mama Gina this is my dad," he gestured to the man slightly older than her, "and this is my brother Don," he gestured to the other man. "Dad, Don, this is Mama Gina."

Alan offered a hand and she shook it, after returning Eddie to Charlie, tears still in her eyes, "Thank you for taking good care of my baby boy," Alan said as he glanced fondly at his youngest son, "You don't know how much it means to me, that he's okay." Gina gave him a weak smile, but secretly hated the fact Alan had referred to Charlie as his. As far as she was concerned, Charlie was _her_ son.

Don shook her hand as well before beckoning his team to follow him, "This is my team, I'm with the FBI. We want to get down to the truth with what happened to Charlie _and_ Max. I know my brother cares alot for him and no one hurts my little brother, not anymore."

"Thank you," she said, but it didn't ring true for some reason. Don shook it off, she was just upset that her husband had been killed. He walked past her and talked to the LAPD officer in charge, informing him that the case would now be turned over to the FBI. The officer let him inside, but looked angry that the case was being taken away from him. So did the members of CSU he sent away so their own forensics experts could examine the scene.

The inside of the house was a complete mess, drawers were opened and files scattered all over the floor. On the couch lay a man about the same age as his own father, but tall and wiry with jet back hair and a few grays scattered about. Max Cranbrook's shirt was painted crimson with his own blood and Don observed several stab marks on the man's body.

David and the others were silently looking around with him, but Colby noticed something odd, "Hey Don, take a look at this!" He said, holding up a file with several pictures inside in his gloved hand. Don looked through them and found several candid shots of Charlie at seven years old. Many of them included himself in the picture and a few of them had their parents as well, but in each one, Charlie was circled.

"I don't like the looks of this," Don spoke darkly as another folder was passed to him by Megan, but this time it was a letter. It read: _Max, for a good price I will grab the child for you and your wife. Just tell me the time and place and the brat will be yours to use as you choose. _

"They were behind it all," David spoke the words they were all thinking out loud, "They didn't expect for Charlie to get shot though, so they dropped him at the hospital..." he trailed off as he looked at a photograph. It was Gina in a nurses uniform, "My guess is they found out Charlie was alive and then adopted him to avoid paying whoever grabbed him. And this is that person's revenge."

"They probably couldn't have children of their own and then Gina must have seen Charlie," Megan added and looked at Don, "Charlie is out their with Gina and she has to know we were going to figure this out..." Gunshots exploded the air followed by several yells and then silence.

Don pulled his gun out of his holster without another word and ran towards the door. The sight that beheld him outside was not one he cared to see. His father was bleeding on the grass and the police officers that had been guarding the door was dead by porch steps, but Gina, her brother, Charlie and Eddie were speeding away in a dark green car.

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A/N: Mwahaha, I had no idea this was going here, but it did. Hehe I am so darn evil it's not funny sometimes. Anyway I hope you can wait until next week or so for the chapter. MWAHAHAHAHAHA... please review... pretty please!

Queen of Cliffies

Nicole


	6. Chapter 5: My Mother

A/N: Here is yet another chapter in this story. Chapter five, yippie! This story seems to be going faster that "A Million" did, I don't know if that's good or bad. You decide.

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Chapter Five: My Mother

Cranbrook's House-7:45pm

After Don went into the house, Charlie noticed a scary change in the woman who'd raised him. She was mumbling to herself and searching for something in her large totebag, "Mama Gina? What's wrong?"

"What's wrong? They're going to find out Charlie! That's what's wrong, they won't take you from me, I won't let them!" She told him angrily as she eyed Alan and directed her fury at him. "You will not take my boy from me. You don't know what it took to get him!"

Alan just looked at her for a moment before his own rage awoke in his heart, "You're the one behind this. You took my baby boy from me? I swear I'm going to-"

"Stop it!" Charlie spoke quietly but with a force he didn't know he had as his son trembled in his arms, "You're scaring Eddie. Mama Gina, are you telling me, that you and Papa Max orchestrated my kidnapping?"

"Sorry Baby, but it was the only way to get you. A mother needs her child, I knew you were supposed to be mine, it was a mistake that you were born to the Eppes'," Gina sounded genuinely sorry, but that didn't placate Charlie at all.

"I'm not your baby," Charlie growled angrily, "You are not my mother, my mother was Margaret Eppes and Max was never my father, just a criminal."

Gina frowned for a minute but grinned when she found what she was looking for in her totebag. With a frighteningly calm face, she lifted the gun from her purse and shot Alan in the chest, "Your mind will change Baby," she told him as she then pointed the gun at him.

"PUT IT DOWN, GINA!" The police officers yelled in union, but before they could unholster their guns, she shot each of them in the head.

Still with a calm face, she aimed the gun at Charlie and Eddie once again, "Go get in the car Baby, we're going for a ride."Charlie obeyed, hugging his terrified child to him as tightly as he could. Gina looked to her brother who was staring at her astonished, "Dan! Come on, we're leaving and I do not want to kill you too!" Dan opened the passenger's side door and got in quietly before Gina climbed into the driver's seat, and drove away just as Charlie saw Don run out of the house with his gun drawn.

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Cranbrook's House-8pm

"We need an ambulance at 25 Almberg Road right now!" Don spoke into the phone as he kneeled beside his fallen father, "Two officers are down and one civilian. Hurry!" He hung up quickly and pushed his jacket more firmly onto his father's wound, "Hang on Dad, help's on the way."

"She took Charlie, Donnie," Alan gasped for another breath before continuing, "She took my baby again."

"I know Dad, I know," Don told him softly, "I'm going to get him back, don't worry. Dad I need you to save your breath okay?"

Alan nodded quietly and whispered, "Okay."

Don turned to face his agent's, but still maintained the pressure of the gunshot wound, "See if you can catch up to them, I need to stay with my dad."

Megan nodded and took charge, Alright, grab as many files from the house as you can, they might say where Gina and her brother would take them. Also they went west right?" David nodded as he ran inside with Colby and returned with an armfull of files, "Okay let's get moving, I'll call the office and get them to put a BOLO out right away." They didn't waste any time and were gone in less than a minute.

The silence surrounding Don was erie, there was only the sound of his father gasping for each breath, "Hold on, Dad. You can't give up now... please." He pleaded quietly but Alan didn't answer him, just kept gasping loudly.

The sounds of the sirens were finally being heard and Don kept on the pressure until the paramedic's came to take over. Alan was quickly put onto a stretcher and bagged. They loaded Don's father into the ambulance and Don climbed in after, "What the hell happened here?" One of the EMT's asked as the other paramedic's announced the officers dead.

"Hell broke loose," Don supplied quietly and knew that was the horrific truth.

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Abandoned House-9pm

"Gina, would you please tell me what the hell is going on. You just murdered three people and kidnapped two more at gunpoint!" Dan paced the floor of the house, and glance at Charlie, who was handcuffed on the couch. Eddie sat beside his father with eyes as wide as saucers. His grandmother was scaring him and he wanted to know why she had hurt his grampa and taken them away. Gina hadn't bothered to restrain the boy, knowing he wouldn't do anything that might endanger his father.

"I did what I had to Dan, and you didn't have to come with me," Gina retorted angrily, her hands clenched in fists, "That man was about to take my son from me!"

"From what I hear, you took his son away first. That adoption probably wasn't even legal! Now I'm in this mess and I'll be arrested too!" Dan yelled at his older sister and threw a vase of flowers across the room. It shattered into a thousand pieces and lay broken on the floor.

Charlie stared as all of this went on, he'd never seen his uncle get so angry, nor Gina. Eddie was now curled up into a small ball beside him sobbing and Charlie had no idea what to do. "Please, Mama Gina, just let us go and everything will be alright," he begged quietly, more for his son than for himself.

"Shut up Charlie!" She snapped before smacking him across the face, "And you'll call me Mom. I'm your mother!"

He winced at the stinging blow and knew 'Mom' had gone for the edge. She'd never hit him, not once in his life, only Papa Max had done that and only when he'd severely misbehaved, "Yes Mom," he whispered to placate her, but hated himself for it. He meant what he'd said earlier, Margaret Eppes was his mother and no once else could replace her role.

Eddie peeked from his tightly formed ball and saw the bruise Mama Gina had formed on his daddy's face, "Mama Gina, please don't hurt Daddy," he spoke meekly and looked up at her pleadingly.

"Edward Alan Cranbrook! Do not tell me what to do!" She screamed at him and aimed an open hand for the child, but Charlie pushed himself in front of his boy and took the blow.

"Mom," Charlie spoke in a soft voice.

Gina's anger softened at the word and helped Charlie sit back up straight, "I'm sorry Baby," she told him gently and kissed him on the cheek. "I didn't mean it." Charlie only nodded, knowing that the key to getting out of here was to get Gina to trust him and to keep her calm and happy. "Are you hungry, Honey?" She asked in a concerned voice, a complete change from the moment before.

"Yeah, Mom, I am," he spoke in the same soft, gentle tone and hoped for the best,

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A/N: Okay there's the fifth chappy for ya and I hoped you enjoyed it. I'm so in the zone on my writing write now I think I'm going to go type up chapter six right now. I hope your enjoying this and please please please review!

Queen of Cliffies

Nicole


	7. Chapter 6: Over The Edge

A/N: I have to admit I haven't had a muse like this since like my third fanfiction story I wrote at least ten months ago. I've been writing like mad on this story, the only reason you're not getting these all in the same week is I'm being careful. So if I get writer's block I'll still have something to post for you:D

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Chapter Six: Over The Edge

Megan's Car-9:25pm

"Do you guys see anything that might help?" Megan asked David and Colby as she drove in the direction that Gina's car had sped off in, they'd been driving around for an hour and a half and Megan was started to fear that they had lost track of them.

"Not yet... wait! A house that Max and Gina Cranbrook moved out of when they 'adopted' Charlie. I don't think anyone has bought it since." Colby answered, with a hopeful grin.

"What's the address Granger?" Megan questioned quickly.

"45 Heraldi Avenue," he told her the location and realized it was the place they had passed around ten minutes ago, "But you'll have to turn around."

"Well isn't that just perfect," Megan spat sarcastically, not at Colby, just at the fact they'd already passed the place where Charlie and Eddie were most likely being held and never noticed. "Buckle up," she told them as she pulled a U turn. She flicked on the sirens and sped toward the abandoned house Colby had mentioned.

It took them only five minutes to get there thanks to Megan's speedy driving. "Alright, Colby get the back and David cover me, I'm going in the front." Megan ordered quickly, getting into the role of temporary team leader.

"You got it," David told her and shadowed her as she approached the front door. With one swift movement, she kicked the door in and rushed inside yelling:

"FBI! Put your hands up!"

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Abandoned house- 9:15pm

"Did you like your sandwich honey?" Gina asked as she handcuffed Charlie once again, and settled him onto the couch.

"Yes Mom, it was good," he told her, trying to sound truthful, but he knew that it sounded utterly fake. It still made him cry on the inside everytime he forced himself to call her mom, but he knew he had no other choice in the matter.

"You lying, little, ungrateful bastard," she seethed and raised a hand to hit him, but instead closing it into a fist. The punch landed directly into his abdomen and he never knew Gina could hit so hard. Max's murder definetly had pushed her over the edge and she was falling quickly. The sad part was, she was trying to take them all with her.

Leaning over and grunting in pain, Charlie looked up at the woman he'd once thought of as his saviour. As a child he figured she'd saved him from a life in the system, but in truth, she was the one who ruined his life. Now she just looked like a crazy, old woman capable of murder. A spark of anger shot into his mind, what if Gina or Max had ordered the death of his child? "Did you do it?" He asked her, the contempt blatant in his voice.

"What?" She spat, wondering what the 'ungrateful' mathematician was getting at.

"Did you have them kill her, Meggie, my angel?" Charlie questioned, anger flowing through his veins as his eyes met hers.

"How dare you insinuate such a thing!" Gina's eyes flashed as she lost control, fists coming down on Charlie and a few strays hitting the little boy next to him. Charlie knew he'd messed up and struggled to cover Eddie with his own body and prayed that Dan would stop this madness or Don would find him.

After five minutes of struggling to pull Gina off of the young man, Dan took her by the shoulders and shook her a little, "Gina? What the hell is wrong with you! End this now!"

Gina grabbed Dan's hands firmly in her own and threw them off her, "I though you'd understand Dan, but I guess not." She grabbed the gun from the coffee table and aimed it at her brother, "I didn't want to do this, but you left me no choice Dan. Goodbye Little Brother," and with that final lament, she shot him directly in the head.

Charlie stared at her with disbelief, she'd just killed her own brother, what did that mean for him and Eddie? Terror began to consume him as Gina turned to him, "See what you made me do Baby?" And it was the calmness of her voice that scared him the most.

"I-I didn't make you do anything Mom," Charlie stuttered a little bit and flinched as Gina grabbed him by the shoulders and sat him back up straight. Her cold eyes glared into his and she raised her hand yet again, "I'm sorry Mom," he said quickly, knowing what was coming.

"That's a good boy," she told him and patted his bruised cheek gently. She stepped over Dan's body and walked into the other room, leaving Charlie alone with Eddie.

"Daddy... I'm so scared," the six year old whispered between hiccups.

"It's okay Eddie," Charlie told him gently, "Daddy'll do whatever it takes to keep you safe, okay?"

"Okay," Eddie sniffled a little bit, but then his head perked up slightly, "Daddy, I heard something outside!"

"What son?" Charlie questioned as quietly as possible.

"A car I think... Is Uncle Donnie coming to save us?" He knew his uncle protected and saved people for a living and he had no doubt that his uncle would rescue them.

"I hope-" but that was all Charlie could get out before Gina returned to the room, the gun still in her hand. A split second later, Charlie heard a yell that he was extremely glad to hear.

"FBI! PUT YOUR HANDS UP!" Megan's voice echoed through the room as the door fell inward. Eddie had thrown his hands up in the air, confused as to what was going on. Gina just pointed the gun at the little boy and spoke.

"I think you should put that gun down," she said calmly and Megan noticed Dan's body laying on the floor, still bleeding profusely.

"I think you should let them both go," Megan retorted just as calmly, but panicked when she saw that Gina was about to pull the trigger on little Eddie. "Okay stop! I'm putting the gun down," she slowly went to place the gun on the ground and was thankful that David hadn't been seen yet.

Just as Megan was about to let the gun slip from her hand to the floor, Colby came in the the back and tackled Gina to the ground. "Eddie! Run!" Charlie screamed at his son as Gina fought Colby off of her difficultly. Eddie ran to David who was right outside the door. Without hesitation, David scooped the child up and ran to the safety of the car.

Two shots went off inside the house and David didn't even notice he'd been holding his breath until he let it out. Megan was assisting a very bruised Charlie out of the house while Colby led Gina Cranbrook out in handcuffs.

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Hospital-10pm

Don sat in the uncomfortable waiting room and wondered how close his agents were on rescuing Charlie, he knew they would, but he wished he was there to help. He knew though, that right now his father needed him and that his team would be able to find Charlie. "My emotions would just get in the way," he whispered to himself, trying to get rid of the guilt that plagued him for not going after his brother. His father was the one in the most immediate danger and he just couldn't leave him.

The doors to the hospital opened and he looked over, curious to who had come in. To his surprise, it was David and Megan, and they had his brother and nephew with them. He didn't know whether to be happy or angry, Charlie was black and blue with bruises and Eddie sported a black eye, but then again, they were safe.

"Charlie! Are you okay, what happened?" Don questioned quickly as he gave Charlie a brief, but gentle hug.

"Gina, she just, I don't know, went over the edge," he said quietly and sat in one of the chairs, "She killed Uncle Dan... right in front of me and Eddie."

"Charlie..." Don trailed off, unsure of what to say, "I'm sorry."

Charlie didn't answer, and a very solemn Eddie walked up to his father and opened his arms. His silent way of saying he wanted up, the poor child was too traumatized to speak. He'd seen five people get shot in a total of five days and four of them had died. Charlie tried to lift the child onto his lap, but gasped in pain when his left arm couldn't take the pressure. Don picked up Eddie silently and sat him on his brother's lap, watching as Charlie wrapped his son in an one armed hug.

Charlie looked over to Don with sad eyes, "How's Dad?"

"In surgery, but they say he has a good chance," he answered as best he could, "What about your arm?"

"It's not an emergency, but the doctor's should get around to it eventually," he gestured to Megan who was filling in on of the nurses on Charlie's condition. Charlie let out a deep sad sigh and whispered, "Why me?"

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A/N: Well there's chapter six and hope you think it was good, althought I was once again evil to Charlie and the other Eppes as well.


	8. Chapter 7: Angel's Name

A/N: Well I just reread one of my favorite books and reading a good book makes me want to write; so I've decided to write another chapter for y'all. So sorry it took me so long to update, my only excuse is I've been busy, please forgive me! I have to say though, for no reason whatsoever, that my dog is a little bit of magic. I think all young things are, and a 6 month old Siberian Husky puppy would make anyone smile :-D. Anyway here's the seventh chapter of my story.

_This chapter is dedicated to my big sister Alice, my little sister Cassie and to my late grandfather._

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Chapter Seven: Angel's Name

Hospital-The Next Morning 8:23am

"Charlie... I think maybe you and Eddie should go with Megan. She could help Eddie to remember what the shooter looked like," Don approached the subject gently, knowing his brother would object to it. He looked at his brother's fractured arm, now splinted in a plaster cast, and his eyes traveled to Charlie's haunted ones.

"I'm not leaving. It's my fault Dad's here; I can't just leave," Charlie said exactly what Don had expected him to say, but that didn't make Don back down.

"Charlie, you aren't any help just sitting here and doing nothing. You can help, though. Take Eddie and go with Megan, you can find out who shot Meg. I promise I'll call you if something happens. And for the record, it is Gina Cranbrook's fault that Dad's here, not yours," he tried to persuade his little brother. He knew that he would be of little help on this case and someone had to stay at the hospital. He also knew that Charlie should be with Eddie when the boy finally got the courage to tell what he saw that tragic day.

"He's got a point, you know," Megan added softly and looked at Charlie and then his sleeping child. "You could help more at the FBI headquarters."

Charlie slumped his shoulders and knew there were right, but that didn't mean he wanted to go, "Right now what matters to me is Eddie's welfare... will it best for him?"

"He's battling some pretty terrible demons right now Charlie. I won't lie to you," Megan told him quietly, "But it will be better for him to talk about it and it'll probably make him feel better if he thinks he's helping to get justice for his sister. We need to catch whoever did this, for his peace of mind, for yours, and for the rest of your family's."

Charlie gave a long resigned sigh and asked one last question, "We won't be gone too long will we?"

"We won't keep you longer than we need to, I promise," Megan smiled at him and Charlie pushed himself out of the uncomfortable chair. He looked to Eddie and hated to have to wake him up, but knew he couldn't carry him with only one arm. Megan looked at him sympathetically and lifted the sleeping boy into her own arms. Eddie stirred softly, but didn't wake.

"Thanks," he told her quietly and hoped the appreciation showed in his eyes. He turned to his elder brother, "I'll be back as soon as I can."

"I know Buddy," Don replied softly and his eyes told a sad story, about a little brother lost, then found, but with so many repercussions.

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FBI Headquarters- 8:56am

Eddie sat next to his father is a small room, facing Megan. He fiddled with his thumbs a bit, he knew why he was here and didn't want his dad to leave under any circumstances. His father had been the only thing constant in his life lately and he clung to him for safety.

"Eddie, I don't know if anybody told you, but my name is Meg-" she didn't have time to finish her name because Eddie interrupted her.

"That was Angel's name!" He exclaimed and her looked at with eyes as wide as saucers.

"It's very close Eddie, my name's Megan," she explained softly.

"You're like Meg," Eddie told her shyly before adding, "Same eyes, soft voice. She had a soft, warm voice. Told stories; Daddy said she wove them from some secret place in her head. When I was scared, she'd tell me a story and I'd feel safe, in bubble wrap." The words were so mature for such a young child and just from the wistful way Eddie talked about his sister, you could tell the two had been extremely close.

"I'm touched that you think that," Megan replied honestly. The little boy had forever stolen a piece of her heart, "Do you feel safe here with me and your daddy?" Eddie nodded silently and looked up at her with his soft, brown eyes, "Safe enough to tell me what happened when Meg was hurt?"

With a quiet sniffle, Eddie nodded again, "There was a big, black van and a man inside. He pointed something at Meggie and me, and-and-and-" He broke off, sobbing. Charlie remained silent but rubbed his son's back comfortingly with his good arm.

"Eddie, if I brought a special artist for you... could you tell her what the man looked like?" Megan questioned gently, careful to simplify it for the child.

"Uh huh," he sniffled again and looked up to his father with sad eyes. Grief and rage rose in Charlie's chest, grief that his son was so traumatized and rage at those who caused the turmoil in his little boy's eyes.

Megan left the room for a moment and came in with a good looking woman with horn-rimmed glasses. She held a sketchpad in her hands and sat across from Eddie and Charlie, "My name is Cassandra Loranger," the woman said gently to the two seated across from him, "but you can call me Cassie."

"I'm Charlie Cran- I mean Eppes, this is my son Eddie," Charlie introduced himself and Eddie rather awkwardly, and once again taking the name he was born with.

"Eddie, this is the special artist," Megan gestured to Cassie and then asked, "Can you explain to her what the man looked like?"

The little boy's chin trembled a little bit, "H-he had shortish gray hair..."

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Hospital- 9:08am

"Agent Eppes?" A doctor in a long white coat came into the waiting room and addressed him formally.

"Your father is out of surgery and we're moving him into recovery at the moment. He removed a bullet from his left lung and repaired the damage as best we could. We're hoping for the best, but I don't want to raise any false hopes," the doctor, presumably Dr. Invermere from the little name card on his coat.

"Can I see him?" Don asked tiredly, but his eyes were hopeful.

"Not quite yet, but in an half hour or so it might be alright for a few minutes. I'm going to warn you now, it won't be a pretty sight. He's still under anesthesia and intubated at the moment-" Dr. Invermere began but Don cut him off.

"I've seen plenty of things that aren't pretty, I'll be fine," Don told him curtly, "Just let me know when I can see him."

"I will Agent Eppes," Dr. Invermere told him quietly, "but it's different when it's family."

"Of that I'm perfectly aware," her muttered when the doctor was out of earshot. He knew what it was like when it was family, he'd watched as his baby brother bled from a gunshot wound when he was only nine and he'd watched his mother fade away when the cancer ravaged her body only a few years ago. He was perfectly aware it was different, but he still knew he wouldn't be prepared to see his father in a hospital bed. No matter how many things you experience or see, when someone you love is laying helpless in a hospital bed, it tears you apart.

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A/N: They say when you draw from personal experiences that your writing can become deeper. I don't know if this chapter did that, but I did take some of this from personal experience. The stories for example; I use them myself as escapism. My big sister and I make up stories together. Just funny little stories that cheer me up when I'm upset. I've taken to doing the same thing with Cassie too, whenever something's bothering her. The last sentence is the one that has to most meaning to me though, I hope to never see someone that way ever again.


	9. Chapter 8: It's Charles Eppes

A/N: Hey guys, here's another chapter for ya. I hope you like it, it may not be the best, but it needed to be written. Also I'm going on my Christmas vacation to Ontario tomorrow and there won't be any updates until at least te 7th of January. Sorry!

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Chapter 8: It's Charles Eppes, not Cranbrook

9:19am- FBI office

Charlie stared at the sketch of the man who'd shot his daughter for a long moment and Megan noticed he'd gone pale, "Charlie, do you recognize him?" She questioned him gently.

The young mathematician swallowed thickly before answering him, "He's one of the men, the ones who kidnapped me. He's the one who shot me." The words came out of his mouth slowly, almost not believing them himself.

"Daddy?" Eddie looked up at his father and watched as he sunk to the floor in a heap, unconscious. "Daddy!"

_He was in the car, barely conscious, only vaguely remembering the men doing something to his big brother, "Donnie," he gasped quietly._

_"Shut it kid, your brother's as good as dead and so are you," one of the men told him and then the other smacked the speaker over the head._

_"Shit, he's alive. We can't give him to them like this. You ruined everything!" The man in the passenger's seat screamed and Charlie winced silently at the large outburst of noise._

_"Well what are we going to do?" The driver asked quietly and braced himself for another blow. None came, the other man just shrugged._

_"He's no use to us like this, he's gonna die anyway. Just drop him off at the hospital, they'll take care of the body and all that crap. Not in L.A. though, we'll drop him off somewhere else," the passenger spoke dismissively, they weren't getting their money, they might as well; just drop the brat somewhere._

_"I've always wanted to go to Vegas..." the driver said and the other man just laughed. The passenger looked at Charlie, lifted his gun and smashed the butt into the side of the child's head._

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9:19am- Hospital

Don stared at the man laying in the hospital bed, a tube came out of his mouth, breathing for him. There were also numerous IV's leading out of one of his arms, and Don swallowed the lump in his throat. Sitting down beside his father's bed, he sighed, "Hey Dad, thanks for holding on for me. They found Charlie and Eddie...again. They're fine, I promise. Charlie wants to be here, but he and Eddie are at the office. Megan thinks she can get a sketch of the man who shot Meg from what Eddie saw." Don paused, hoping that from some miracle, his father would answer him.

His lower chin trembled a little bit and realized it was true, when it was someone you cared about, it ripped you up inside. The steady beeps of the heart monitor seemed to calm him a little and Don continued, "You have to keep holding on. Everything's going to be okay. It's just we need you so much right now. Charlie and Eddie need you, I need you. Dad you have to hold on, I know you miss Mom, but we're not ready to lose you too." He broke off as the doctor came into the room.

"Agent Eppes?" the doctor asked gently.

"Yeah?" He looked up at man came into the room. Dr. Invemere was about fifty himself and looked at him sympathetically.

"I'm sorry, but you'll have to leave your father now," he said quietly, "You can come back in later."

"Alright," he replied just as quietly and looked at his father before leaving, "I'll be back Dad."

Dr. Invermere escorted him back to the waiting room and he sat down in the uncomfortable chair. David looked over at his boss and saw the look on his face.

"That bad huh?" He asked quietly.

Don only nodded and sighed deeply, "They ruined our lives David. Twenty-three years ago our lives by taking Charlie, now we get him back, but at the price of his daughter and now this."

"I know, but they'll pay," David told him comfortingly, "Gina's being booked for attempted murder, murder, assault and kidnapping and it won't be long until we catch whoever shot Meg. Merrick also approved reopening Charlie's case because he turned up. We're going to get everyone involved."

"Doesn't change anything though, if my Dad doesn't make it," Don began, venom poisoning the tone of his voice, "I will personally make them pay and nothing will stop me."

The doors to the hospital opened and Don looked over to see what the commotion was. A man with dark curly hair was being rushed in on a stretcher, looking frighteningly familiar. Following behind, Megan come into the waiting room holding Eddie in her arms.

"Don, I'm sorry," she told him immediately as she handed his nephew to him, "He saw the sketch of the man who shot Meg and then he collasped not long after." She pulled a folded copy of the sketch from her pocket and showed it to him.

"Oh shit, I know him. He was one of the men who took him," Don said under his breath as he recognized who the man was. He was over twenty years older, but it was definetly him.

"Yeah.. I figured," Megan spoke quietly and sat down on the other side of her boss. It wasn't long after that a doctor came up to them.

"Family of Charles Cranbrook?" The doctor asked.

Don stood up, still holding Eddie in his arms, "It's Charles Eppes, not Cranbrook. His ID is wrong."

"Sorry for the mix up," the doctor smiled, "Charles is malnourished, dehydrated and suffering from exhaustion. Has he been eating and sleeping properly?"

"I don't know, it's been a horrible week, so he might not be," Don answered as best he could and then looked to Eddie.

"Mama Gina made him eat a samwich, but Daddy doesn't eat wif me no more," Eddie spoke up meekly and Don's eyes flashed quickly at the mention of Gina.

"Can we see him?" Don asked and the doctor brought him and Eddie to the room where Charlie was sleeping. His little brother was pale, bruised and had an IV, but he was nowhere near as bad as their father.

"Is Daddy going to be okay Uncle Don?" Eddie asked quietly, deathly afraid his daddy would leave him too.

"Yeah, your daddy's going to be just fine," Don told him softly and the two of them sat with Charlie quietly for five minutes before Don spoke again, "Your daddy needs to sleep for a bit longer okay? Let's go wait with Megan and David."

Eddie nodded silently and slipping his hand into his uncle's, he allowed himself to be led out of the room.

10:30am-hospital

Charlie's eyes fluttered wildly, wondering where he was. The room was brightly lit and a man dressed in white was standing over him, "Where am I?" He asked quietly.

"The hospital, Dr. Eppes, you collapsed," the doctor told him with a small smile. "As it seems you haven't been taking very good care of yourself lately."

"You're not my doctor from earlier," Charlie mentioned quietly, figuring the doctor didn't know the whole of what was going on. But truth be told, he hadn't eaten or slept much since Meg had been murdered.

"No, I'm not... I'm guessing it was for your arm," the doctor answered and pointed towards the cast.

"Uh huh," Charlie muttered and then asked, "Where's my son?"

"Your son is in the waiting room, with... his mother I beleive?" The doctor told him gently and Charlie looked up at him confused, but quickly realized who the doctor was referring to.

"She's not his mother," Charlie mumbled the correction before asking, "Can I see him? I wanna see my boy."

The doctor just smiled and left the room, returning shortly, followed by Eddie, Megan and his older brother. Megan lifted Eddie onto the bed and the little boy immediately cuddled close beside his father, "Daddy? Are you kay?"

"Yeah Eddie, Daddy's fine," Charlie told him softly and looked up at Don and Megan, "I'm sorry."

"Don't be sorry Charlie," Don told him quietly, "It's not your fault, you've been going through alot, more than the rest of us."

"He's right Charlie," Megan agreed sympathetically, "but you will have to stay here awhile."

"Figures," he muttered before asking, "How's Dad?"

"Dad's going to be fine Charlie," Don supplied, hoping that he wasn't lying to his little brother, "Dad's going to be okay," he said again, trying more to convince himself than his brother.

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A/N:Well I hope you enjoyed that and please please please review! I love constructive critism, if it helps me to improve, I'm happy, but please if you see something that needs work, be specific. Let me know what needs to be fixed and give me some suggestions please! I love praise even more though!


	10. Chapter 9: Told You So

A/N:OMG I UPDATED!!! I'm so so sorry it took me this long and I know nothing will change that fact. Life has been busy and I really wish I had written the whole story out before posting the first chapter and not just most of it. I'm going to do that for every new story that I write from now on, so you guys don't have to wait so long (for those of you who will read any of my future stories.) Also the document manager wouldn't let me upload new documents. I exported an old chapter and pasted this in its place. I hope it works. Once again, sorry. Please Review!

Chapter Nine: Told You So

12pm- Entranceway of the Hospital

"I'll go see how Colby is doing tracking down the guy Gina and Max hired," Megan said quietly, "I'll grab David too, fresh eyes will help."

"Fresh eyes?" Don questioned looking at his friend, "Megan none of us had any sleep last night. But yeah Colby will need the help. Maybe check out some more of those folders we found at the Cranbrook house?"

"Good idea, but I don't know how much more we'll find," Megan rubbed her head wearily, "Maybe we can get a handwriting analysis done on whoever sent the letter to the Cranbrooks about Charlie, and I have a feeling there is something we're missing from the Cranbrook house."

"You think we're gonna get them?" He sighed with a sad look on his face, lately everything he'd believed had completely unraveled in front of his eyes.

"I know we are Don," Megan reassured him with a small smile, "These guys aren't all that smart... I mean they messed with you didn't they?"

"Thanks Megan," he gave her a weak grin, "Let's do this." He looked around the hospital parking lot and gave out a long sigh. A blue car flashed through his vision as it drove by him. Afterwards he gave Megan a smile that was a little bit stronger than the last, "What are we waiting for?"

"You," she smiled back bravely and climbed into her car while Don got into the passenger's seat. His leaned back in the seat as she began to drive, thinking about how crazy and hectic the past 48 hours had been.

He had found the little brother who was supposed to be dead, and a nephew he never knew existed, before losing them both again. Then they were brought back to him, but there were so many horrors that came with it. His brother was mourning the loss of his daughter and now their father was at death's door. He rubbed his face in his hands for a moment, absorbing it all.

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12:34pm- Old Warehouse

"I really don't see the point, James," Jace rolled his eyes at his cousin's violent tendancies. He was all about business and violence was simply a tool he sometimes utilised.

"He's a witness, like evidence or something," James protested, thinking it over in his head, "Jace, the boy saw me, my face. It won't take long for them to put together that you're the leader of all this."

"We'll get caught if we don't get out of the country, now," he pressed this fact on his younger cousin, "And I will not let you get me caught James. You may be my cousin, but I am not going to jail, not even for you."

"We'll get caught if we don't take care of the evidence. All I'm suggesting is we go back to Max's place and take the hidden files. Those feds will find them eventually," he spelled out his little plan, "So I say we find and destroy them before they can read them."

Sighing softly and knowing he wouldn't be able to talk him out of this one, Jace relented, "We're in and out in ten minutes, no longer, no matter what. As for the kid, forget about him. Once we're relaxing in Mexico, he won't matter anymore."

A rush of adrenaline flushed through James's body and he let out a smile that resembled that of the Grinch, "Let's just go to the house and get the files." Soon it would all work out. With the survellience he had on the feds and Charlie, he knew a little fact, one that he hid from his cousin. Soon he would be the one who was in charge and there would be no more piggy-backing off Jason's crimes. No... they would be all his own.

"Remember James, this is business, not pleasure," Jace lectured seriously and his cousin just smiled and nodded serenely.

"I know, I know," but for him, it was always about pleasure.

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1:06pm- Cranbrook house

"This is useless James, where are the friggen hidden files?!" His cousin snapped impatiently, glaring at the younger man, his eyes flashing with noticeably anger.

"They're here, man," he argued back and sifted through some papers, "Wait, hey look, there's a panel or something underneath this desk."

"And usually the only thing I find under desks is old chewing gum," a voice told them from the doorway, "FBI! Put you're hands where I can see 'em."

James looked at his cousin and gave him a brief nod. He made to pull out his weapon, but when Jace pulled out and fired, he dropped down and rolled, making for the backdoor while Don was busy handcuffing cousin. He heard footsteps behind him, but they seemed to fade into the background and he knew he'd made good ground. He'd beaten Jace at his own game and found a way to avoid the feds.

"Stop right there," he found a gun in his face and a pretty woman had a grim smile on her face as she aimed it at him steadily.

"Well hello there," he shifted an eyebrow, giving her a little smile, but Megan didn't buy it. She snatched the gun from the waistband of his pants and tossed it to one of her partners.

"On your knees and hands on your head," she demanded, eyeing him seriously and with a long sigh, James dropped onto his knees, but he still wore a smug little smile.

"Anything for a lady," he placed his hands on the back of his head and Megan yanked them behind his back so she could cuff them. She did him no favors, making sure they were uncomfortably tight.

"Wipe that smug little grin off your face," she ordered him curtly, "You're going away for life. And you know, not even convicts like child killers." That did it, James was no longer smiling.

Megan smiled at her boss as they put both suspects were handed off to the backup and on their way to federal lock up, "Told you we'd get them."

"Yeah," he smiled a little bit weakly. Catching those two didn't feel as good as he thought it would, but then again... it didn't change that his father was fighting for his life in the hospital. "I guess you did."

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"Hey Charlie," Don gave his little brother a short wave as he sat down next to his bedside in the uncomfortable hospital chair, "I have something I want to show you... and I need you to tell me if these are the guys."

He nodded softly, "I'll try not to pass out this time," he attempted at a joke and smiled weakly. Don showed him the mugshots of Jason Marcobson and James McNeal. Charlie stared for a moment, before coughing frantically.

"Charlie? Buddy are you alright?" Don looked at him worriedly and went to press the call button for him, but Charlie stopped him as he began to slowly calm his burning throat.

"M'fine," he whispered softly, "Yeah... it's them. Did you... did you get them?"

"Yeah Charlie, I did," Don smiled a little bit and changed the subject, "Any news on Dad?"

"They told me," Charlie began quietly, and cleared his throat again, "That he's going to survive, but he'll need someone to take care of him for awhile. They told me he woke up."

"That's- well that's a relief," Don sighed, thanking God for a moment for his momentary good fortune, "I'll just have to move in with him and help him out."

"Actually..." Charlie trailed off and let out a small breath, "I-I don't think I can keep living where I...where I lost Meg. Besides I think Dad might like having a kid around and maybe... we could make up for lost time or something. I know it won't change anything, but..."

"I know Charlie," Don smiled gently. He heard footsteps and saw Eddie come into the room, followed closely by his new friend Megan. "Hey Kiddo," he greeted his nephew and Eddie grinned a little too.

"Hey Eddie," Charlie's face light up a little bit at the sight of his little boy, "I want to talk to you okay?"

"Otay Daddy," Eddie said quietly and climbed up onto the hospital bed and hugging Charlie tightly.

"I want you to see somebody... to help you," Charlie exhaled quietly, "I know losing Meg was hard and I think you should talk to someone." Eddie nodded, not uttering a single word, just holding onto his father. "There's only so much time in the world," Charlie murmured softly, looking up at his older brother. "I wasted so much and I'll never get it back."

"The pain will never really go away," Don mentioned to his brother softly, "I know that much from Dad, but it will fade and get easier to deal with. You can put back all the pieces, they just might not fit the same, but... We're going to be fine Buddy."

"I know," he whispered softly and squeezed his son gently, before giving up a tiny, but genuine smile, "I know."

FINIS

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A/N: Not the best ending I know, but it's where my muse lead me. Please review, but no all out flames.


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